After his mysterious AWOL in the New York Knicks’ game versus the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday, there are now NBA trade rumors that Derrick Rose wants to be traded from the Big Apple team. The Knicks got blown out by the lowly Pelicans in New York, but the story of the night were questions, on why D-Rose did not show up for the Knicks. Rose reportedly practiced before the matchup but had some personal reasons to attend.

Other speculations state that Rose could be sending a message to Knicks head coach Jeff Hornacek for his decision to bench the starting point guard in crucial stretches in their recent games. Rose was acquired by the Knicks in an offseason trade with the Chicago Bulls, where Rose was an All-Star and won an NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) award.

Murmurs of a Derrick Rose trade demand in New York

Adrian Wojnarowski reports that Rose is not happy with his role in New York. Wojnarowski says that Rose is “privately” not please with the situation with the Knicks.

“Rose has been increasingly frustrated with how this Knicks season has unfolded, culminating with him privately fuming over his diminished late-game role in Friday night’s victory in Milwaukee, sources said,” Woj said in a recent Yahoo Sports article. “Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek played undrafted rookie Ron Baker over Rose in the fourth quarter.”

After struggling in the early part of the 2016-2017 NBA Season, the Knicks appeared to be playing well and back in playoff contention. But recent struggles have pushed them down outside the playoff picture in the team standings. The Knicks dropped to 17-21 after the Pelicans’ loss and have lost eight of their last nine games.

The Knicks could trade Rose this season as he has some value left despite the poor shooting and lack of leadership. They still have Brandon Jennings, who was signed last offseason and is capable of taking over the starting point guard spot.

Rose’s value is his expiring contract, which is at $21.3 million this season. He will become a free agent after the year and is not expected to get a max contract because of injury issues. Another team could be looking at Rose as a short-term solution at point guard and at the same time still be flexible in clearing salary for the next season.